Beethoven Celebration

Two hundred years after Beethoven's death, we close the season with three works that span almost his entire creative life. The Cello Sonata in F major, Op. 5 No. 1, comes from 1796, written for a virtuoso cellist at the Prussian court and, with its companion, the first work in history to treat the cello and piano as genuine equals. The "Archduke" Trio, Op. 97, is Beethoven at his most expansive — composed in 1811 for his student and patron the Archduke Rudolph, and the last work he ever played in public as a pianist. And the Grosse Fuge arrives in Beethoven's own arrangement for piano four hands, Op. 134: he made it in 1826, in the final months of his life, so that the most uncompromising music he ever wrote could be heard by anyone with a piano and a willing friend. From the young virtuoso to the visionary of his final year, the complete sweep of Beethoven's greatness in one evening, in a room intimate enough to hear it all up close. PROGRAM: ​Sonata for Cello and Piano in F major, Op.5 No.1 - Beethoven Grosse Fuge (for Piano 4-Hands) - Beethoven Piano Trio in B-flat Major, Op.97 "Archduke" - Beethoven Jasper Wood, violinDaniel Hamin Go, celloWanting Cheng, pianoAvan Yu, piano